同步阅读.doc

必修2 Unit 4 同步阅读Passage ABaijiOne animal which is still alive, but has almost disappeared from the world, is the Chinese river dolphin or baiji.The baiji is a beautiful animal with a graceful body and long nose. It is bluegrey with a white underside, weighs between 100 and 160 kilogrames, and can grow up to eight feet long. It lives in the middle and lower parts of the Yangtze River. Most dolphins live in the sea so the baiji is very unusual. It is one of only five kinds of river dolphins in the world.In the past, the Yangtze River was home to many thousands of baiji. A book written during the Han Dynasty, 22 centuries ago, tells of the river being full of the beautiful creatures(生物). At that time, there were many stories about the baiji. One story said that the dolphin was really a beautiful princess who had drowned in the river. Another said it was a kind of horse that could gallop(急速先进) across water, carrying gods on its back.Sadly, the situation today is very different. Many millions of people live in the Yangtze River basin and the river is busy, noisy and polluted. The baiji is almost blind and moves around using sounds. With so many boats and people using the river, the animals cannot find their way around. They are unable to find food, or find each other. Year by year, the numbers of baiji in the river become fewer and fewer.A lot of work is being done to help the baiji. One section of the river has been made into a kind to nature park, where the baiji can be safe. Fisherman work together with scientists and tell them when they see a baiji, or if they find an injured one. Injured animals are taken to a research center and nursed back to health. However, in spite of these measures, scientists estimate(估计) that there may be fewer than 100 baiji still alive in the river. If things continue as they are, the lovely creature will disappear in the next 25 years.Exercises:I. Match the headings with the correct paragraphsParagraph 1 ( )A. Describing the baijiParagraph 2 ( )B. The present situation of the baijiParagraph 3 ( )C. Introducing the baijiParagraph 4 ( )D. Trying to save the baijiParagraph 5 ( )E. Stories from the pastII. Complete the following sentences, Circle the letters.1. The baiji is a kind of _.A. fishB. whaleC. dolphinD. horse2. During the Han Dynasty, three people could find _.A. no baijiB. a few baijiC. 100 baijiD. lots of baiji3. The baiji cannot find its way around because _.A. it is almost blindB. it cannot see in the polluted waterC. too many people live in the Yangtze RiverD. it relies(依赖，依靠) on sounds to find its way, and the river is now very noisy.4. The baiji is being helped in several ways; for example _.A. fisherman catch the baiji and then take them to the research centerB. the river is now full of people helping the baijiC. one part of the river is now a nature parkD. the whole river is now a nature parkIII. Complete the sentence with words from the passage.1. Horses can walk, trot(快步走), canter(慢步小跑) and _2. The teachers say we have all worked very hard. They _ that most of us will pass the exam easily.3. The air in the city is so _ that many people are getting asthma(气喘) and other illness.4. John was quite badly _ in a car accident, but he is almost better now.5. The woman looked very _ in the beautiful silk and cheong samPassage BCondors (秃鹰) Are Coming Back!Not long ago, the future looked grim (黑暗的) for the California condor. Today, because of conservation(保育) efforts, the huge bird can be seen flying over its old territories(地盘) once again.Condors eat carrion(腐肉), usually the bodies of other small animals. They can spot their food from the air, or watch for other carrion-eating birds circling over a carcass(尸体). Ranchers(牧场主), fearing that the condors were preying(捕食) on their cattle, used to shoot them and poison carcasses they knew the condors would eat. These techniques worked too well, and for a while condors teetered(濒于) on the brink(边缘) of extinction.To help re-population the area with California condors, scientists and researchers are now breeding(繁育) them in captivity(囚禁) and then reintroducing them into the wild. Its been working well, and in December 1996, the first California condors were released(释放) outside of Calinornia, into the Vermillion Cliffs of northwestern Arizona. They had been kept in a pen(围栏) on a 1,000-foot cliff(悬崖) in preparation for their freedon. From the moment they flew away, the condors have been watched carefully by a team of scientists. Five of the six birds released as part of the project survived on their own. The sixth condor was killed in fight with a golden eagle.The effort to save condors takes a lot of planning and hard work. The goal of the condor-recovery(恢复) program is to put two populations of California condors back in the wild, one in California and one in Arizona.Exercises:I. Choose the best answer according to the passage.1. Why did condors teeter on the brink of extinction?A. Because the future looked grim for the condors.B. Because they didnt have enough carrion or body of other small animals to eat.C. Because the condors preyed on the ranchers cattle.D. Because ranchers used to shoot them and poison carcasses they know the condors would eat.2. The condors in _ area had a dreadful future.A. the Vermillion CliffB. ArizonaC. CaliforniaD. Dallas3. What are scientists and researchers doing to change the situation?A. They are helping repopulate the area with California condors.B. They are breeding condors outside of California.C. They are taking the condors outside of California.D. They are keeping the condors in a pen on a 1,000-foot cliff in preparation for their freedom.4. At last what had happened to the sixth condors?A. They had been watched carefully by a team of scientists.B. They flew away to the Cliff for their freedom.C. Five of the six released as part of that project survived on their own, the sixth condor was killed in fight with a golden eagle.D. The sixth condors back in the wild could have their freedom.II. Choose the correct answer.carcassA. 尸体B. 雕刻breedA. 饲养B. 面包eagle A.急于B. 鹰technologyA. 技术B. 技术III. Match the words and their explanations.1. wildA. cows and bulls2. freedomB. in the natural state3. cattleC. time that has not come yet4. futureD. method of doing something that needs skill.5. techniqueE. condition of not being under controlPassage CA lesson from historyFor millions of years, different kinds of animals have lived and then disappeared from the Earth. In the past, animals like the dinosaurs(恐龙) disappeared for natural reasons. Nowadays, animals almost always disappear because of the actions of people. The milu deer disappeared from China, and only recently returned, because it was hunted and killed by people. One of the first animals to disappear in this way was the dodo.The dodo was a kind of pigeon(鸽子) which only lived on the little island of Mauritius in the India Ocean. It was a large bird-over 25 kilos in weight-and looked rather strange with blue-grey feathers and yellow legs. There were no dangerous animals on Mauritius, so the dodo had stopped being able to fly. It simply walked around the forest, looking for food and living a safe and easy life.This all changed in the 16th century when Portuguese sailors first arrived on the island. The dodo was not afraid of people and this, along with the fact that it couldnt fly, made it very easy to catch. The birds were so trusting and slow that the sailors called them “dodo”, which means “a stupid person” in Portuguese. Thousands were killed and eaten, and soon the dodo became an important source（资源）of food for all passing ships. The dodo was also under attack from other animals. Pigs, monkeys and, more importantly, ate their eggs. Very quickly, the number of dodos started to fall.By 1681, only 200 years after people first set foot on Mauritius, the last dodo had died. The greed (贪婪的) and selfishness of people had destroyed their peaceful lifestyle (生活方式). The bird which was given the name stupid, is now a symbol(标志) for the stupidity(愚蠢) of human beings.ExercisesI Answer the questions according to the passage.1. Why do most animals disappear from the Earth?_2. What was the dodo?_3. Why didnt the dodo need to fly?_4. Why did the dodos simple life change?_5. Why did the number of dodos fall?_6. What else, apart from people, were attacking the dodo?_II Here are some events from the passage. Put them in the correct order. Number them(1-6).1. The last dodo died.( )2. The dodo lived happily in Mauritius for centuries. ( )3. The milu deer returned to China.( )4. The number of dodos fell.( )5. The dinosaurs disappeared from the Earth.( )6. Portuguese sailors arrived in Mauritius.( )III Match the words and phrases in Column A with their meanings in Column B.Column AColumnB1. strange A. on a ship2. sailorsB. quiet and safe3. on boardC. people who work on ship4. set foot onD. something which represents something else5. peacefulE. arrive on land6. symbolF. odd; peculiar（奇特的）Passage DSave the WhaleOne animal that was recently taken home to live in the wild is a five-tonne killer whale called Keiko. It is one of the most famous animals in the world because he is a film star.Keike was caught in the ocean near Iceland 19 years ago, when he was two years old. He was then sold to an amusement(娱乐) park in Mexico. Killer whales are very intelligent(聪明) and they can learn to do tricks. Keiko was so good at performing(表演) tricks, that in 1993, he was taken to America to star in the film Free Willy. The film tells the story of a boy and his friendship with a killer whale. After the film was finished, Keiko returned to Mexico, but he had grown larger, and was too big for his tank. Keiko became very sick.When free Willy fans heard that their favourite actor was living in unhealthy conditions, they decided to save him. They started the Free Willy Keiko Foundation to raise money. With donations(捐助) from the film company and some wealthy people, the foundation flew Keiko from Mexico to a specially built tank in Oregon, USA. On the day he arrived there, local(当地的) children lined the streets cheering and waving flags.After more than two and a half years in Oregon, Keiko was well enough to go back to his real home, so he took an eight-hour flight in special tank on board a plane. Then his tank was loaded onto a truck and driven to the sea. Again, local children cheered in the streets to welcome Keiko to his new home. Finally, Keiko was released (释放) into a special pen in the sea. When his trainers are sure that he can look after himself, he will be set free in the ocean.The cost of taking Keiko back to Iceland was around US$ 12 million. This is a lot of money, but it doesnt seem to so much when you remember that Free Willy made over US$ 124 million in the USA alone. The children of Iceland and Oregon know that Keiko is worth it.Excercises:I. Complete the following sentences according to the passage.1. Keiko is special because he is _.A. from MexicoB. 5 tonnesC. a film starD. a kind of killer whale.2. Keiko was originally from _.A. Mexico B. AmericaC. OregonD. Iceland3. Killer whales _.A. are very intelligentB. are the biggest kind of whaleC. kill humansD. like small children4. Keiko became sick because he _.A. had grownB. was too big for his tankC. didnt humansD.like small children5. The Free Willy Keiko Foundation raised money to _.A. save KeikoB. make another filmC. build a tank in MexicoD. give to children6. On his journey back to Iceland, Keiko traveled by _.A. train and truckB. boatC. plane and truckD. landII. Here are some words and phrases from the passage. Choose the best meaning for each one.1. in the wildA. very angryB. in a dangerous placeC. not in a zoo or wild life park2. starA. famous person or animal B. animal in a filmC. something shinning in the sky at night3. amusementA. room full of gamesB. place to see things and have funC. funny place4. donationsA. money that you give to help some elseB. money that you work forC. mo